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Afghanistan election

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An Afghan shopkeeper prays near an election campaign billboard, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 16. Afghan officials sought to reassure wary Afghans on Thursday that it will be safe to vote in this weekend's parliamentary election despite an upswing in violence in recent months. Gemunu Amarasinghe/AP

An Afghan man sits in a tea shop as a election campaign poster is displayed on a wall in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 16. Gemunu Amarasinghe/AP

A military vehicle passes Afghan candidate posters at a checkpoint in Kandahar Province on Sept 16. Omar Sobhani/Reuters

An Afghan man walks past an election poster of parliamentary candidate Simin Barkazi on a traditional taxi in Herat, western Afghanistan, on Sept. 16. Raheb Homavandi/Reuters

An Afghan man rides his bicycle under a tree containing electoral posters in Herat, western Afghanistan, on Sept 16. Raheb Homavandi/Reuters

An Afghan girl walks past by election posters of parliamentary candidates in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 15. Afghans will choose 249 members of the lower house from among more than 2,500 candidates in parliamentary elections this weekend. Musadeq Sadeq/AP

A supporter of Qadria Yazdan Parast carries her poster away after attending an election campaign in the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 15. Saurabh Das/AP

An Afghan election worker checks a list at a warehouse in Mazar-e-Sharif on Sept. 16. Barat Ali Batoor/Reuters

Poll workers transport election materials to be taken to various polling centers in Kandahar, Afghanistan, on Sept. 16. Allauddin Khan/AP

Supporters shower Faridoon Ilham Mahmoodi, a candidate for the forthcoming parliamentary elections in Afghanistan, with confetti during an election campaign in Kabul on Sept. 15. Fayaz Kabli/Reuters

Nima Suratgar, an Afghan parliamentary candidate, gives a speech as she meets with a group of teachers in Kabul on Sept. 15. Afghanistan will hold parliamentary elections this weekend. Afghanistan's Constitution says a quarter of the seats in the 'wolesi jirga,' the lower house of parliament, should be for women – or 68 out of the total of 249. Andrew Biraj/Reuters

Supporters of parliamentary candidate Farkhunda Zahra Nadri stand in front of a map of Afghanistan during a campaign rally in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 15. Afghans will choose 249 members of the lower house from among more than 2,500 candidates this weekend. Musadeq Sadeq/AP

An Afghan man, carrying a floor mat, walks past election campaign billboards in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 17. Police set up extra checkpoints across Afghanistan on Friday to scan for suicide bombers and insurgents a day ahead of parliamentary polling. Gemunu Amarasinghe/AP

Afghan President Hamid Karzai (c.) flanked by First Vice President Muhammad Qasim Fahim (l.) and Second Vice President Mohammad Karim Khalili (r.) arrives to deliver a speech in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 17. Karzai urged Afghans to vote in this weekend's parliamentary election despite threats from the Taliban warning people not to leave their homes. Gemunu Amarasinghe/AP